1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a system for monitoring the condition of a road surface, and more particularly, to such a system using one or more sensors disposed under the road surface and being readily interchangeable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Management of vehicle traffic and safety is no longer a luxury, but, instead is a necessity, especially in urban areas where the density of traffic is substantial. Effective traffic management requires up to date information on the condition of the road surface at specific locations of the road. The road conditions which need constant measurement and monitoring are, for example, the moisture content, the dryness, the presence or absence of snow and/or ice, and the depth thereof, temperature, etc.
Current conventional road surface monitoring systems generally rely upon sensor units being disposed on poles located adjacent to the road. These conventional systems are expensive to maintain and replace, and are difficult to access.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to overcome the aforementioned and other disadvantages, problems and deficiencies of the prior art. The foregoing and other objects are attained by the invention which encompasses a road condition monitoring system comprising one or more sensor units interchangeably disposed in a container which is disposed under the surface of a road, the units each comprising a specific sensor for measuring and/or monitoring a physical value of a particular condition, such as rain, snow, depth of snow, ice, etc, means for powering the one or more sensor units, and means for communicating the measured and/or monitored condition to an external station and for receiving control signals therefrom.
Another feature of the invention is placement of a power supply within the container.
A further feature is the use of an external power to drive the various units contained in the container.
Another feature is the use of a wire or wireless transmitter and/or receiver for the sensor units and contained within the container.
A further feature is the use of connectors to connect the various units contained within the container to other devices.
A yet further feature is the use of a communicating means for transmitting signals from the sensor units by wireless transmission or wire transmission to external stations.
Another feature is the use of unique address or identification codes for each container located under the road surface so as to enable exact location of a particular road surface being measured.
Another feature is the use of differential GPS units in the container to transmit to a vehicle road surface condition signals from the sensor units in the container.
Another feature is the use of a visible display signal disposed on a pole located adjacent to and/or over the road, to display road surface conditions.
A further feature is that the sensor units may comprise a laser radar sensor, a load moisture sensor, an optical sensor, a radiometer, an ultrasonic snow depth sensor, a thermometer, or a rain gauge.